Gizmodo: AT&T’s got the fastest network in test of 12 cities

AT&T has fought back against Verizon Wireless’ disses about its more limited 3G coverage with ads touting its faster speeds. And now gadget blog Gizmodo is backing AT&T up saying its 3G network topped Verizon in a speed test in 12 cities nationwide.

According to Gizmodo, AT&T had the fastest download speeds in 6 of the 12 cities, including the Bay Area, while Verizon had the fastest download speeds in 4 of the cities. Sprint was tops in Tampa while T-Mobile won out in Portland, Ore.

When AT&T wasn’t first, it was second in three of the cities. On the upload side, AT&T swept all 12 cities.

Gizmodo is quick to point out they didn’t test overall coverage or reliability. It was just a straight speed test using 3G data cards on laptops.

The local test consisted of five locations, NoPa (North of the Panhandle), Financial District, Fisherman’s Wharf, Ocean Beach and the Ashby BART station in Berkeley. Except for the BART station, AT&T had the quickest downloads at all the locations.

Some of you might be quick to point out that speed doesn’t matter if you can’t get on the network. But it shows that AT&T is making investments in its network and with its step up to HSDPA 7.2 and beyond, it’s got some speed in the pipes, as long as you can take advantage of it.